An increasingly diverse United States means that clinicians are encountering more languages in hospital settings. SLPs and audiologists have a legal and ethical responsibility to ensure language access—that is, to actively bridge communication challenges between clinicians and patients/families who do not speak, understand, read, or write in the same language. This session discusses language access law and solutions for situations in which a trained medical interpreter is unavailable.
This course is a recorded session from the 2021 online conference “Empowered SLPs in Health Care: Breaking Barriers and Shaping Solutions.”
Learning Outcomes
You will be able to:
- define language access and describe how language barriers impact clinical practice
- explain legal and ethical responsibilities when using medical interpreters
- identify short-term solutions for situations when a medical interpreter is unavailable and describe how to implement a language access plan
Presenter Information
Joshuaa D. Allison-Burbank, PhD, CPH, CCC-SLP, is Diné and Acoma Pueblo. His clans are Tl’ógí, Parrot Clan (Acoma), Tó’áhání, and Yellow Corn (Acoma). AllisonBurbank is a speech-language pathologist at Northern Navajo Medical Center in Tsé Bit'a'í, Navajo Nation, and owner of Little Moccasins Education Services, LLC. Prior to returning home, Allison-Burbank worked as a Research Project Coordinator for the Culturally Responsive Early Literacy Instruction: American Indian/Alaska Native at the University of Kansas. He provided mentoring and clinical supervision to trainees in the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities interdisciplinary training program at the University of Kansas Medical Center. His clinical and research interests include community assessment and engagement, parent coaching, culturally responsive teaching practices, and prevention of developmental delay in American Indian children. Allison-Burbank received his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Kansas, where he focused on neurodevelopmental disabilities and prevention research. He has a Public Health Training Certificate in American Indian Health from Johns Hopkins University. He attended the University of New Mexico, where he received a BA in Speech and Hearing Sciences.
Disclosures:
- Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation
- Works for the Indian Health Service
- The information presented does not reflect the perspective or opinion of the Indian Health Service
Assessment Type
Self-assessment—Think about what you learned and report on the Completion Form how you will use your new knowledge.
To earn continuing education credit, you must complete the learning assessment by 11:59 p.m. ET on the end date below.
Program History and CE Information
Online conference dates: June 2–14, 2021
End date: June 28, 2026
This course is offered for 0.05 ASHA CEUs (Intermediate level, Professional area).
Subject code 7030
Counts toward PD requirement for ASHA certification maintenance for Content Area 2. Read more about professional development requirements for certification maintenance.
